Carolina's Aviation Museum, Charlotte NC.

[AeroplaneDriver]

I made a trip to the museum here in Charlotte a few weeks ago.  Unfortunately as soon as I turned the camera on the battery died, so all pics are from an iPhone.  The museum moved last year from its old location in one of the airport's original hangars to the shiny new facility vacated when Wells Fargo shut down Wachovia bank's large corporate flight department post-merger.  The old hangar was nice in that it was very historic, but in all honesty it was dirty and cramped, and a mess.  The new hangar is gorgeous, and the centerpiece of the collection is now the US Airways A320 that landed in the Hudson back in 2009.  As a US Airways Instructor it was kind of moving to see this aircraft, largely intact, knowing how easily 155 survivors could have been 155 fatalities. 

Anyway, here area  few pics from the day...







Shot showing the inside of the new museum building.  AV-8B prototype and Cobra in front of the A320.  Sorry for the dark pic!



On the day I visited a NCANG C-130 from across the field was on display. 





Currently a DC-7 in Eastern Airlines colors is on display, somewhat inadvertently. This is a flying aircraft which was in CLT in November giving sightseeing rides.  When it was leaving to go back to FL it blew an engine.  Since it is operated by a non-profit organization and DC-7 engines aren't exactly cheap these days, it's stuck here until they can afford the work.  The Clipper Atlantis name is still on from when it was marked in Pan Am colors for an episode of the Pan Am tv series that was around for a few episodes last year. 

[PR19_Kit]

That Seven looks the business in Eastern colours! 

Did they ever operate them for real? I have a decal sheet for an Electra in that scheme, I really should build it.

[AeroplaneDriver]

Yep, they flew them from about the mid-50s to mid-60s if I recall.  My first flight Instructor was an Eastern 757 captain, and I seem to remember he started out on the DC-7 briefly before a stint on the Constellation. 

[rickshaw]

When you said it had "blown an engine", you were being quite literal it seems.   Bit of damage there.  I'd hate to see what the back of the Engine looks like!   

[Captain Canada]

We had a brief stopover at Charlotte when we flew US Airways from Detroit to Nassau. When we taxied out I saw the Hercs and then the -7 when we were taking off. My son said he saw Phantoms on the ground from his window.

When we came back, I saw the tatty old Dak and a Vietnam era F-100. Made me want to go back !

Thanks for posting those pics. Got any more ?